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WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY The Men and fashion mix see page 6 Crosscountry T" 'Cats coverage N j f r I L sec pgc 5 'P WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2005 wsusignpost.com VOLUME 68 ISSUE 20 1 1; & n n os r sz MLm 'xeu i2- xtv- visS f ware Pmgmm fer warmm .. ... .: ." v . - : j . . - .;! ' ----' ' ' , - - -. :- ' : .: .,..- ;.: . " m ' :r s - . ; " ' "--. . .-..V. - v.-iBs.-. . 4S - - ; . ' - " ' - - ... ' ;"- - y . - ' , ' i- ... . ,. After paralyzing accident, student finds new way to walk, teaches others Mike Losee walks from the Student Union Building where he tutors math students to his car Tuesday afternoon. After a paralyzing accident, Losee developed a way to walk and created a Web site to help others. By Trevor Warner sr. news reporter The Signpost The sun was setting on Mike Losee's day of fun when he and his friends decided to hit one more snowboard jump 1 in the Wasatch Mountains near Snowbasin. Losee, 18, found his life was never the same after that final jump in January 2002. Doctors said he had either a compression fracture or a dislocating fracture in his back. As it turned out, he had, both. Initially, the doctors thought he had a detached spinal cord; instead, it was his T-12 vertebrae that was displaced and ruptured. On comes surgery number one at McKay-Dee Hospital. The surgery was supposed to relieve pressure from Losee's spinal cord by sticking a metal rod in his back and fusing the vertebrae. The problem was. McKav-Pre doctors didn't luoc enough cncbiuc and the pressure nev er left. The second surgery took place at University of Utah hospital. There they fused enough vertebrae and stuck two titanium rods in Losee's back. The surgery required putting two screws each in his T-10 i through L-l vertebrae, making a ; total of six to eight screws. "My prognosis was not a 1 good one. They told me I was a o complete injury, which means o I wouldn't ever have any feeling 3 or movement again," Losee said. 2 "Before all of this happened, I 2 was the typical kid. I enjoyed snowboarding, I liked to run and 3 I had a body-conditioning class with the Weber State football team. Once all was said and done, they tell you that you won't walk again and they don't give you a whole lot to work with or look forward to." One day, Losee's grandmother saw on television a place in Provo that works with complete injuries, like Losee's. She called Losee's father, Paul Losee, who then called him. The "Sit Tall, Stand Tall" program is run by Leighton Weber, a former National Football League player. "I was going to this program " wouldn't have it any other way to walk and live life on my feet. I like to look people in the eye, shake their hands and give or receive hugs. I have no regrets." Mike Losee, WSU student full time, 20-25 hours a week." Losee buid. " Ihe more 1 do, the better off I am. It was a real physical program and by the time I got home, I was drained. It's just like the home page says, it really is a 'Program for Warriors.' There was no way I could do that and school, so I put off going to college until now." Losee's mother, Carolyn Losee, is impressed with her son's attitude. "Mike was the one that had the attitude to stay positive and turn everyone else's attitude around," Carolyn said. "He had a rule; when you came into his hospital room that you couldn't murmur or complain about his circumstances and that you could leave if you were going to cry. Carolyn said she feels the family looks up to Losee for all he has overcome. The whole family supported her son and that he brought the family closer together, she said. "Mike learned to be bigger than the problem," Carolyn said. "He never looked back and he learned to be strong and endure challenges. The majority of the time I have to hold back the tears. He inspires people and helps them rise above what they go through. Mike doesn't want people to feel sorry for him; he wants them to focus on him as a person. You have to have a positive attitude to learn how to deal with things in life. You and only you can decide in your mind what your attitude is going to be." Losee is now a WSU sophomore studying computer science. He and his father made a Web site called "No Wheels." The Web site is about what Losee does, how he does it and to hopefully give some inspiration to others. The two Web sites are nowheeIs.com and sittallstandtall.com. "It's impossible to convey the combination of people who just don't care or don't believe," Losee said. "You can sit in a chair or work your butt off to walk. I wouldn't have it any other way to walk and live life on my feet. I like to look people in the eye, shake their hands and give or receive hugs. I have no regrets." You can reach reporter Trevor Warner by calling 626-7655. powe pesky By Chris Ripplinger campus affairs editor The Signpost Online classes ended Thursday unexpectedly when the WebCT Vista computer system crashed during an annual systems fire safety inspection. Weber State University students were out of contact with their online courses for days. "An inexperienced technician initiated an emergency power off which is, without planning, a catastrophic event in an operations center," said Don Gardner, WSU chief information officer, to the senators. "That's exactly why we have backup power generators to prevent anything like that from happening." Kevin Hansen, assistant vice president in facilities management, described the error that occulted during Ihe annual systems lire inspection in a separate interview. WSU hired an off-campus contractor to check fire systems in campus buildings. The normal procedure is for a contractor to set off Ihe alarms, then a si all member checks to see if the alarm registers al facilities management. During dial safety-check process, a technician unfamiliar wilh WSU proiedures accidentally shut oil ihe emergency power, which bypassed ihe crniplihlc power supply" and back-up generators powering WebCT Vista. Though power was restored after the hard crash, Hansen said the outage triggered complications in the hardware, software and programming aspects of the online systems. The complications required a four-day repair, denying professors and students access to their online courses. 'The systems are up now, but assignments submitted between Thursday and Friday afternoon were lost. "This outage was much too long," Gardner said in a separate interview. "And we are taking some very major steps to make sure it doesn't happen again." One step .involves bringing engineers in next week to upgrade the operating system and complete a storage net to back tip information, which Gardner said would have helped in this situation. Technology experts from the' University of Utah will also review the situation and make recommendations. WSU didn't have to pay to restore WebCT Vista because maintenance contracts wilh the corporations involved covered the costs. Upgrading and reviewing the system will cost upward ol $10,000, Gardner said, but hi; added thai those measures are necessary. "We're not going lo gel caughl in (his situation again," Ik; said. Sec WebCT page 1 ' "V vv.av. V Vice president of student affairs candidate Janet C. Winniford meets with WSU student leaders lo answer questions during a luncheon Monday. Search for vice president of student affairs begins again By Becky Palmer , spe ial assign, edilor llw Signpost The firs I candidate for vice president of student affairs discussed Monday her desire to move lo Weber Stale University from Texas A&M University. Janet C. Winniford (old of her love of the environment surrounding WSU and her desire to have impact on a mid-size campus. Itul only Ihree student leaders out of .'ill who were invited allended the free luncheon and iicslinn asking session. ( )ne was hall'an hour lair. liyan Slarks, WSU Sludenl Association president, explained thai because ihe luncheon began al I I :.'l() a.m., many leaders mighl he in class. Kill he said eight had promised lo allend. bynlee Robinson, WSU fXv cabinet relations director, tY f was one student leader who Sen. attended.. "What would you like to accomplish at Weber State University," she asked. "What connection do you want to have wilh the students?" Winniford said "direct contact wilh Ihe students is integral to everything we do at the institution." She promised that, il'hircd, she would make sludenl contact a priority. Winniford talked about how she would allend a dinner meeting every other Tuesday wilh Ihe sludenl government. "Ifs been a great way to foster that two-way coinmunicalion," she said. The conversation conlinued, touching See Search page 7 Bicyclist hits pedestrian, flees scene A man on a bicycle struck a woman crossing Edvalson Street Monday at 10:13 a.m. The Weber State University Police Department reports the bicyclist was traveling west on Edvalson when he encountered vehicles stopped at a red light at the crosswalk between the LDS Institute of Religion and the WSU Social Science Building. Rather than stopping, the bicyclist swerved around the vehicles and struck the woman, the WSU police report said. The woman hit her head, receiving a bleeding laceration. The man scratched his knees. The pedestrian moved herself to the sidewalk, where an off-duty nurse treated her while waiting for the police to arrive. The man left the scene, allegedly telling witnesses he was going to clean his knees and come back, WSU Police Sgt. Robin 1 lelton said. When the police and lire department arrived, the man was still missing. Because the victim had head, face and jaw pain, the paramedics transported her to McKay-Dee 1 lospital. The man never returned lo the scene. Sgt. Michael Davies found the man stuffing his bike in the trunk nt" his car on the south side of campus in the parking lot. "lie said he didn't think he hail any responsibility to stay w ith the woman he injured, even though he told the witnesses at the scene that he would return." Davies said in his report. Because: ., a .bicydo .is considered a vehicle, the man Was cited lor leaving the scene of an accident, failure to obey traffic laws and failure lo yield. The pedesliian's name and condition have not yet been released lo ilic Sij-jipot

Public Domain. Courtesy of University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University.

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WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY The Men and fashion mix see page 6 Crosscountry T" 'Cats coverage N j f r I L sec pgc 5 'P WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2005 wsusignpost.com VOLUME 68 ISSUE 20 1 1; & n n os r sz MLm 'xeu i2- xtv- visS f ware Pmgmm fer warmm .. ... .: ." v . - : j . . - .;! ' ----' ' ' , - - -. :- ' : .: .,..- ;.: . " m ' :r s - . ; " ' "--. . .-..V. - v.-iBs.-. . 4S - - ; . ' - " ' - - ... ' ;"- - y . - ' , ' i- ... . ,. After paralyzing accident, student finds new way to walk, teaches others Mike Losee walks from the Student Union Building where he tutors math students to his car Tuesday afternoon. After a paralyzing accident, Losee developed a way to walk and created a Web site to help others. By Trevor Warner sr. news reporter The Signpost The sun was setting on Mike Losee's day of fun when he and his friends decided to hit one more snowboard jump 1 in the Wasatch Mountains near Snowbasin. Losee, 18, found his life was never the same after that final jump in January 2002. Doctors said he had either a compression fracture or a dislocating fracture in his back. As it turned out, he had, both. Initially, the doctors thought he had a detached spinal cord; instead, it was his T-12 vertebrae that was displaced and ruptured. On comes surgery number one at McKay-Dee Hospital. The surgery was supposed to relieve pressure from Losee's spinal cord by sticking a metal rod in his back and fusing the vertebrae. The problem was. McKav-Pre doctors didn't luoc enough cncbiuc and the pressure nev er left. The second surgery took place at University of Utah hospital. There they fused enough vertebrae and stuck two titanium rods in Losee's back. The surgery required putting two screws each in his T-10 i through L-l vertebrae, making a ; total of six to eight screws. "My prognosis was not a 1 good one. They told me I was a o complete injury, which means o I wouldn't ever have any feeling 3 or movement again," Losee said. 2 "Before all of this happened, I 2 was the typical kid. I enjoyed snowboarding, I liked to run and 3 I had a body-conditioning class with the Weber State football team. Once all was said and done, they tell you that you won't walk again and they don't give you a whole lot to work with or look forward to." One day, Losee's grandmother saw on television a place in Provo that works with complete injuries, like Losee's. She called Losee's father, Paul Losee, who then called him. The "Sit Tall, Stand Tall" program is run by Leighton Weber, a former National Football League player. "I was going to this program " wouldn't have it any other way to walk and live life on my feet. I like to look people in the eye, shake their hands and give or receive hugs. I have no regrets." Mike Losee, WSU student full time, 20-25 hours a week." Losee buid. " Ihe more 1 do, the better off I am. It was a real physical program and by the time I got home, I was drained. It's just like the home page says, it really is a 'Program for Warriors.' There was no way I could do that and school, so I put off going to college until now." Losee's mother, Carolyn Losee, is impressed with her son's attitude. "Mike was the one that had the attitude to stay positive and turn everyone else's attitude around," Carolyn said. "He had a rule; when you came into his hospital room that you couldn't murmur or complain about his circumstances and that you could leave if you were going to cry. Carolyn said she feels the family looks up to Losee for all he has overcome. The whole family supported her son and that he brought the family closer together, she said. "Mike learned to be bigger than the problem," Carolyn said. "He never looked back and he learned to be strong and endure challenges. The majority of the time I have to hold back the tears. He inspires people and helps them rise above what they go through. Mike doesn't want people to feel sorry for him; he wants them to focus on him as a person. You have to have a positive attitude to learn how to deal with things in life. You and only you can decide in your mind what your attitude is going to be." Losee is now a WSU sophomore studying computer science. He and his father made a Web site called "No Wheels." The Web site is about what Losee does, how he does it and to hopefully give some inspiration to others. The two Web sites are nowheeIs.com and sittallstandtall.com. "It's impossible to convey the combination of people who just don't care or don't believe," Losee said. "You can sit in a chair or work your butt off to walk. I wouldn't have it any other way to walk and live life on my feet. I like to look people in the eye, shake their hands and give or receive hugs. I have no regrets." You can reach reporter Trevor Warner by calling 626-7655. powe pesky By Chris Ripplinger campus affairs editor The Signpost Online classes ended Thursday unexpectedly when the WebCT Vista computer system crashed during an annual systems fire safety inspection. Weber State University students were out of contact with their online courses for days. "An inexperienced technician initiated an emergency power off which is, without planning, a catastrophic event in an operations center," said Don Gardner, WSU chief information officer, to the senators. "That's exactly why we have backup power generators to prevent anything like that from happening." Kevin Hansen, assistant vice president in facilities management, described the error that occulted during Ihe annual systems lire inspection in a separate interview. WSU hired an off-campus contractor to check fire systems in campus buildings. The normal procedure is for a contractor to set off Ihe alarms, then a si all member checks to see if the alarm registers al facilities management. During dial safety-check process, a technician unfamiliar wilh WSU proiedures accidentally shut oil ihe emergency power, which bypassed ihe crniplihlc power supply" and back-up generators powering WebCT Vista. Though power was restored after the hard crash, Hansen said the outage triggered complications in the hardware, software and programming aspects of the online systems. The complications required a four-day repair, denying professors and students access to their online courses. 'The systems are up now, but assignments submitted between Thursday and Friday afternoon were lost. "This outage was much too long," Gardner said in a separate interview. "And we are taking some very major steps to make sure it doesn't happen again." One step .involves bringing engineers in next week to upgrade the operating system and complete a storage net to back tip information, which Gardner said would have helped in this situation. Technology experts from the' University of Utah will also review the situation and make recommendations. WSU didn't have to pay to restore WebCT Vista because maintenance contracts wilh the corporations involved covered the costs. Upgrading and reviewing the system will cost upward ol $10,000, Gardner said, but hi; added thai those measures are necessary. "We're not going lo gel caughl in (his situation again," Ik; said. Sec WebCT page 1 ' "V vv.av. V Vice president of student affairs candidate Janet C. Winniford meets with WSU student leaders lo answer questions during a luncheon Monday. Search for vice president of student affairs begins again By Becky Palmer , spe ial assign, edilor llw Signpost The firs I candidate for vice president of student affairs discussed Monday her desire to move lo Weber Stale University from Texas A&M University. Janet C. Winniford (old of her love of the environment surrounding WSU and her desire to have impact on a mid-size campus. Itul only Ihree student leaders out of .'ill who were invited allended the free luncheon and iicslinn asking session. ( )ne was hall'an hour lair. liyan Slarks, WSU Sludenl Association president, explained thai because ihe luncheon began al I I :.'l() a.m., many leaders mighl he in class. Kill he said eight had promised lo allend. bynlee Robinson, WSU fXv cabinet relations director, tY f was one student leader who Sen. attended.. "What would you like to accomplish at Weber State University," she asked. "What connection do you want to have wilh the students?" Winniford said "direct contact wilh Ihe students is integral to everything we do at the institution." She promised that, il'hircd, she would make sludenl contact a priority. Winniford talked about how she would allend a dinner meeting every other Tuesday wilh Ihe sludenl government. "Ifs been a great way to foster that two-way coinmunicalion," she said. The conversation conlinued, touching See Search page 7 Bicyclist hits pedestrian, flees scene A man on a bicycle struck a woman crossing Edvalson Street Monday at 10:13 a.m. The Weber State University Police Department reports the bicyclist was traveling west on Edvalson when he encountered vehicles stopped at a red light at the crosswalk between the LDS Institute of Religion and the WSU Social Science Building. Rather than stopping, the bicyclist swerved around the vehicles and struck the woman, the WSU police report said. The woman hit her head, receiving a bleeding laceration. The man scratched his knees. The pedestrian moved herself to the sidewalk, where an off-duty nurse treated her while waiting for the police to arrive. The man left the scene, allegedly telling witnesses he was going to clean his knees and come back, WSU Police Sgt. Robin 1 lelton said. When the police and lire department arrived, the man was still missing. Because the victim had head, face and jaw pain, the paramedics transported her to McKay-Dee 1 lospital. The man never returned lo the scene. Sgt. Michael Davies found the man stuffing his bike in the trunk nt" his car on the south side of campus in the parking lot. "lie said he didn't think he hail any responsibility to stay w ith the woman he injured, even though he told the witnesses at the scene that he would return." Davies said in his report. Because: ., a .bicydo .is considered a vehicle, the man Was cited lor leaving the scene of an accident, failure to obey traffic laws and failure lo yield. The pedesliian's name and condition have not yet been released lo ilic Sij-jipot